BMO Maintains $1,280 Price Target For Gold

A lot of investor interest in the mining space is currently diverted into the industrial metals, while interest in the precious metals space is very tepid, said Andrew Kaip, Managing Director of Precious Metals at BMO Capital Markets.

This interest in industrial metals comes as President Trump has recently issued an import tariff on steel and aluminum.

A risk-on appetite, fueled by rebounding global growth, does not provide incentives for the average retail investor to own gold as a safe haven asset, said Kaip

"[Gold] is viewed as a safe haven, but when you have global growth in the manner that we are seeing right now, and you have a very healthy economy in the United States, full employment, Europe is rebounding, you really have to think that some of the reasons for owning gold just aren't there with the average person," Kaip told Kitco News on the sidelines of the BMO Global Metals & Mining Conference.

"We are seeing some early signs of interest in the precious metals space, but it's very tepid right now," Kaip said.

This article is commentary by an independent contributor. At the time of publication, the author held TK positions in the stocks mentioned.